Their menu changes seasonally, so I'm not sure if these items are on the menu. But I have really enjoyed their fried oysters and cornmeal catfish. I really liked the buttermilk pie - it was really rich and decadent. And while I'm not a bourbon fan, my usual D.C. gets one of their bourbon mixed drinks and raves about it.

Baked grits with cheese and tasso if you like grits. Side of cornbread with sorghum butter if you like cornbread. Fried oysters.

The rest of the menu is solid but not amazing. Order what sounds good to you. I enjoyed the bavette, but it has since been replaced by a veal strip loin, which I have not yet tried. I also enjoyed the rainbow trout. Dining companions once got the catfish and thought it was a relatively-weaker menu item.

For drinks, do try their cocktails. And their beer selection is good.

For dessert, I've never had a bad item, but nothing stands out. There is a "bourbon milkshake" on the menu right now that sounds interesting, but I've yet to try it.

My recommendations here mirror my overall view of The Mother: Almost everything is solid and good to very good, but nothing is excellent or transcendent.

The veal was pretty good, had it last week. A tad on the dry side, but it was the least dry veal steak i've had in a *long* time.

drink tip: when you order your meal, ask for the bartender's choice. they'll concoct something for you to suit your meal. more often than not they seem to do a better job of matching things than i do myself.

re the 'bourbon milkshake', i didn't see it last week but they had the 'monkey flip' that was really good. Forget the specific ingredients though.